


we'll tell our stories on these walls

by doctorsimmons



Category: Wonder Woman (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Babies, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/M, Fix-It, Fluff, Marriage, Pregnancy, Romance, Steve Trevor Lives
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-16
Updated: 2017-09-25
Packaged: 2018-11-14 07:59:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11203755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctorsimmons/pseuds/doctorsimmons
Summary: After the war, Steve and Diana start a life together.Waking up, having breakfast, reading the paper, making babies, getting married, and growing old together.Title from North by Sleeping at Last.





	1. you won't ever be alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Diana reunite, and celebrate by going to the beach together.
> 
> Chapter title from Photograph by Ed Sheeran.

Diana thinks Steve is dead. All she saw was the explosion. In her grief, she only knew she had to do one thing: defeat Ares. It’s only in the aftermath of the battle, when everything is quiet, that she notices that familiar turtleneck collar. Gingerly, she turns the body so it’s facing up, and it’s Steve. She kneels beside him and cries, and barely notices when he stirs, but when his hand grasps at hers, she opens her eyes. “Steve?”

“That’s me,” he says weakly, but still manages to smile.

Stunned, Diana engulfs Steve in a tight hug, laughing and crying at once. “I thought you were dead! How-”

“That’s a story for another time.” Steve grimaces in pain. “Diana. My ribs.”

She loosens her grip slightly as she helps him stand up. “Sorry. Do I need to carry you to the truck?”

“I can walk,” Steve claims. However, after a couple of steps, his face is contorted in a grimace, so Diana scoops him up and carries him to a waiting medic truck, and for the next several days, Diana doesn’t leave his side. Whether he’s sleeping, reading, or eating, Diana is always there, her presence a constant comfort. When Steve is startled awake by nightmares, Diana, his guardian angel, sleeps in a chair next to his bed, will crawl into bed with him, gently smoothing his hair until he falls asleep again.

After a few days, the doctor declares Steve medically fit to go home, so they journey back to London with a pair of crutches in tow. On the boat from France, Steve realizes Diana doesn’t have anywhere to stay. 

“Yes?”

“Would you like to stay at my apartment with me?”

Diana beams. “I would love to!”

Once they arrive back at Steve’s apartment, Diana carries him up the stairs, and lets him down when they reach Steve’s second-floor apartment. “I hope it’s not too shabby,” Steve remarks. “There’s only one bed, so you can sleep on the couch if you don’t want to share with me.”

“I don’t mind. We did share a bed that night in-”

“I remember,” Steve replies, smiling and ducking his head.

Diana doesn’t have any clothes other than her battle gear and the outfit Steve and Etta helped her pick out, so she borrows one of Steve’s undershirts. With some maneuvering so Steve’s injured leg is as comfortable as possible, they climb into bed together. Diana embraces Steve, soaking in his warmth.

“Goodnight, Steve.”

“Goodnight, Diana.”

They fall into the familiar cycle of daily life, of waking up and eating breakfast together. After a couple of weeks, Steve’s leg is finally healed, so he asks Diana, “Where would you like to go?”

“The beach,” she replies.

Steve almost opens his mouth to object, because it’s November and it’s freezing, then realizes the beach is probably something familiar to her. It’s not Themyscira, but it probably reminds her of home.

Bundled in coats and sweaters, blankets in tow, they take the train to the coast. Steve, exhausted from receiving medals and shaking hands with important people, falls asleep on Diana’s shoulder. When the train stops, she runs her fingers through his hair and presses a kiss to his cheek. When he looks up at her with eyes as blue as the waters around Themyscira, she’s reminded of the day they met.

It’s a bright, chilly day late in November, so they practically have the beach to themselves, save for another young couple. The boy stands up and leans down to allow the girl to get on his back, and he carries her around the beach until they fall on the sand, laughing.

Diana, watching curiously, turns to Steve. “Can I give you a ride?”

“Only if you want to.”

Diana’s face lights up. “Of course!”

Steve beams back at her, and she leans down so he can climb onto her back. As bundled up as they are, it’s a little difficult, but Steve manages to get on, and loops his arms around her neck. She supports his legs, then takes off running. Before long, Steve is breathlessly laughing in her ear, and it’s infectious, because Diana’s laughing, too. Steve clings to Diana’s neck for dear life as she sprints down the length of the beach and back several times over. When she stops, she carefully helps Steve down, and he promptly sits.

“Are you alright?”

Steve nods. “I’m fine,” he puffs. “Just a little out of breath.”

Diana sits beside Steve. “We haven't done anything for our own enjoyment in a while.”

“Not since that night in Veld,” Steve remarks, blushing. “This is nice.”

“I agree,” Diana replies. Her hand finds Steve’s, and their fingers lace together easily. For a while, they sit in silence, until Steve breaks it.

“Diana?”

“Yes, Steve?”

“Uh, we never did talk about what I said to you on that runway.” 

“I love- Oh.” Not for the first time, Diana considers the weight of those words.

“I thought I was going to die. I just wanted you to know in case-”

“I already knew. I love you, Steve."

Steve’s heart feels like it’s melting, and he can’t resist hugging Diana. “I love you too, angel,” he murmurs into her ear. In return, she embraces him just as tightly, and they’re home.

They spend the next several hours resting on the blanket, and they try to watch the sky, but end up watching each other instead. They’re curled up together, Diana’s head resting on Steve’s chest so she can listen to the steady, sure beat of his heart, and he plays with her hair, braiding small sections of it. Once, Diana pulls Steve into a kiss, and she can feel him smiling against her mouth. She enjoys knowing that she makes someone this happy.

It’s late afternoon, and the sun is starting to set. “I know we’re comfortable, but we’ll have to leave soon.”

Diana sighs. “I wish we could stay here forever.”

“I know, angel. I know,” Steve replies, squeezing Diana’s hand. “We should dance before we go.”

“Sway,” she corrects. “We don’t even have music.”

“You don’t need music to sway,” Steve remarks with a smirk, and bows, extending his hand, and Diana is reminded of that snowy night in Veld. She takes his hand, and they sway. Diana and Steve hold each other close - even closer than that night in Veld. They sway to the crashing of the waves, the setting sun framing their silhouettes, and Steve thinks Diana looks like an angel.  
That night, on the train back to London, Steve and Diana hold hands, quietly enjoying each other’s company. When they finally return home, exhausted, they take off their coats and shoes, then climb into bed. In the darkness, Diana whispers, “Steve?”

“Yes?”

“Is this another thing people do when there are no wars to fight?”

Steve presses a kiss to Diana’s cheek. “Mm-hmm.”

Diana smiles, and they fall asleep together, at home in each other’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout to Jess and Cherry for beta-ing and to Ellie for encouraging me and letting me bounce ideas off of her as I wrote!


	2. i feel safe when you're holding me near

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Diana get used to life together. They visit Steve's family and discuss the future.
> 
> Chapter title from Hearts Don't Break Around Here by Ed Sheeran.

Diana will never get tired of waking up next to Steve, her arm wrapped protectively around his waist. The simple routine of eating breakfast and reading the paper as they watch the sun rise reminds both of them that the world still has good things to offer, even after the horrors both of them have seen. Diana, not quite used to not needing to fight, keeps her armor and shield hidden in the closet, along with Antiope’s crown. She wears her gauntlets underneath her shirts, though, as a reminder of where she’s from.

Steve helps Diana figure out what she likes. One morning, they discover Diana is definitely _not_ a coffee person when she takes a sip of Steve’s coffee at breakfast. He won’t ever forget her bewildered expression. “This is very bitter! People drink this because they like it?”

“It’s not for everyone. Personally, I like mine with milk and lots of sugar,” he says, putting four cubes into his cup, then a splash of milk.

Diana rolls her eyes. “So you go to the trouble of making something bitter taste sweet before drinking it? Why don’t you just drink something that’s not bitter in the first place?”

Steve shrugs sheepishly. “I like sweet things. Ice cream, cake, chocolate - anything goes. The sweeter, the better!”

With Etta’s assistance, Diana gets a job assisting the curator of ancient Greek artifacts. Steve, declared a war hero for saving so many people from the gas, continues to work for the British military as an advisor. Every morning, on their way out the door to go to work, they kiss each other goodbye, and say, “See you tonight. I love you.”

Months pass. They celebrate Christmas, and Steve takes Diana to the countryside to make snow angels and build snowmen. Steve makes the mistake of starting a snowball fight, and by the time it’s over, both of them are cold and soaking wet, but laughing. Steve captures the moment in a mental photograph, not wanting to forget it. When the weather gets warmer, they go stargazing. Steve points out constellations, and Diana tells him Themysciran stories of how they came to be.

In late spring, an envelope with a New York return address arrives in the mailbox at Steve’s office. He brings it home, and, sitting at the tiny kitchen table, he opens it with Diana. After Steve reads the letter, he passes it to her.

_Steve, I was wondering if you’d like to come back home for a while. Ella and I miss you - she wants you to meet baby Rose. We’d also like to meet this girl you’ve told us about. Much love, Mom._

At the mention of a baby, Diana’s face lights up. “Steve, you never told me that your sister had a baby!”

Steve puts his hands up defensively. “I knew she was having a baby, but I didn’t know when! This is the first I’ve heard of it since we got back from the front. I also mentioned wanting to bring you to visit.”

“When are we going?”

“Next week. I already bought the tickets.”

During the week-long Atlantic crossing, Diana teaches Steve the basics of ancient Greek while he absentmindedly plays with her hair. It’s slow-going, and he stumbles frequently, but Diana’s as patient about teaching him the language as he is when teaching her about the world. Steve is better at understanding it when it’s spoken than when he reads it, so Diana reads ancient Greek texts to him, and more often than not, he falls asleep on her lap.

One night, when they’re in bed, Steve’s back to Diana’s chest, Diana asks, “How did you survive the explosion? You never told me.”

Steve turns around to face Diana and props himself up on an elbow. “Well, the plane had parachutes, so I put one of those on and shot at the plane from a safe distance. Simple as that.”

Diana raises her eyebrows. “You said ‘I’ll tell you later’ like it was a dramatic story you didn’t want to tell in front of everyone.”

“I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it!”

“You saved many lives, Steve.”

“Yeah, but you saved the world. I didn’t want to overshadow that!”

Diana touches Steve’s face, tracing his cheekbone with her fingertips. “ _We_ saved the world.” She brushes his hair out of his eyes so she can press a kiss to his forehead. “Don’t forget that.”

Steve is reminded of why he fell in love with this strong, compassionate woman, and thinks, _God, I’m so lucky_. Out loud, he says, “I love you.”

“Goodnight, Steve.”

“Goodnight, angel.”

When they disembark from the boat in New York City, Steve remarks, “It’s strange how much a place changes when you’re gone for three years. I haven’t been back since I was recruited.”

They walk through the streets, hand-in-hand, and, more than once, Steve tugs a disappointed Diana in the opposite direction when they pass a baby. “Diana, I promise you can hold my sister’s baby all you want when we get to my house.”

When Steve knocks on the door of his mother’s apartment, an older woman with light brown hair and piercing blue eyes answers the door. “Steve! Come in,” she exclaims, engulfing him in a hug, and Diana feels a pang of longing for Hippolyta.

He returns the embrace. “Hey, Ella!”

Just then, Steve’s sister appears. Her hair is a little darker than Steve’s, but she has the same piercing blue eyes. After hugging Steve, she turns to Diana. “Are you the woman Steve’s been seeing?”

“Yes. I’m Diana Prince.” She holds out her hand.

Steve’s mother returns the handshake. “Laura Trevor. That’s a strong handshake you have, Miss Prince.”

“Thank you,” Diana replies hesitantly.

“She saved my life,” Steve interjects. “

“Can’t fault her for that,” Laura says, smiling. “

Diana sees Ella trying to set Rose down and asks, “May I hold her?”

Ella nods gratefully, passing the baby to Diana. Gently, she rocks Rose back and forth, smiling when the infant grabs at a lock of hair that’s fallen out of her braid. Steve watches, enamored by the sight of Diana holding Rose, who eventually falls asleep. “Isn’t she beautiful?”

“She certainly is,” Steve agrees.

“I wouldn’t mind having one of our own someday,” Diana remarks, looking up at Steve. 

He laughs. “We’ll talk about it.”

That night at dinner, Laura and Ella pepper Diana with questions. “How did you and Steve meet?” “How long have you been together?” She answers all of them, and by the time dinner is over, Ella is giddy with excitement. Always the older sister, she won’t stop teasing Steve about how he’s going to have to settle down someday. Steve’s mother also chimes in, periodically giving suggestive looks in Diana’s direction.

For the rest of their visit, Steve takes Diana to a few of his favorite places from when he was younger, including the ice cream parlor, where they order a huge bowl of strawberry ice cream to share, and Central Park, where Steve teaches Diana to play catch, and she teaches him how to dance the way they do on Themyscira. After, when both of them are exhausted, they sprawl out on a blanket in the warm sunshine, and Steve plays with Diana’s hair. Quietly, they enjoy each other’s company, until Steve breaks the silence.

“Diana?”

“Yes?”

“Did you mean what you said the other day? About wanting to have children with me?”

Diana rolls her eyes. “Why wouldn’t I be serious?”

“I-” Steve pauses, fumbling for the right words. “I know I mentioned it in Veld, but I wasn’t sure if you, ah, wanted to.”

“I would have told you if I didn’t.” Diana’s dark brown eyes gaze into the depths of Steve’s ice blue ones, and his expression softens.

“Good. We aren’t having kids for a while yet, though.”

“Why would we have them now? We live in this hideous, filthy city. Children should grow up where they can breathe fresh air and have room to run and play, not in a crowded city where they can hardly breathe.”

Steve playfully nudges Diana. “We’ll deal with that when the time comes.”

When Diana and Steve return home to London, a package sits on their kitchen table. When they unwrap the paper, the now-framed photograph from Veld is there, cushioned by crumpled newspaper. Curious, Diana asks, “What will we do with it?”

“We’ll hang it up there,” Steve answers, gesturing to a spot on their kitchen wall, next to their medals. “Someday, we can tell our children what we did.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout to Cherry and Deb for beta-ing, and again to Ellie for helping me work out ideas as I wrote.
> 
> you can find me on twitter @bldianaprince (the 'i' is a lowercase 'L'), and i'm doctorsimmons over on tumblr.


	3. nothing makes me stronger than your fragile heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve takes Diana to the movies, then out to dinner. He plans on proposing, but Diana beats him to it.
> 
> Chapter title from Turning Page by Sleeping at Last.

After nearly two years of living together, Steve finally works up the courage to ask Diana out on a proper date. They’ve gone horseback riding, stargazing, and sledding together, but Steve wants to ask Diana to marry him. He knows her answer would be yes whether he tried (and failed) to cook dinner for her at home or whether he took her to a fancy restaurant, he wants to do something nice.

When they’re in bed for the night, lights turned out, Steve asks, “Would you like to go out on a date with me tomorrow?”

Diana’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. “What’s a date?”

“Well, when two people are together, sometimes, one asks the other out to do something fun.”

“Like that time we went stargazing!”

“Kind of like that, yes.”

“Does the man always do the asking?”

“Usually, yes. Women can ask men out, but it’s generally expected that men ask women out.”

Diana rolls her eyes in annoyance. “That’s ridiculous! Women can be assertive in relationships, too,” she scoffs. “

“I know. I only asked you because I was pretty sure you didn’t know what dating was. You’re welcome to ask me out on a date whenever you want to.” He winks.

“Noted. What were you thinking of doing on our date?”

“Whatever you want! We could see a movie, then eat dinner at a nice restaurant.”

“What’s a movie?”

Steve thinks for a minute, his expression focused. “Kind of like a play. It’ll be easier to explain when we’re there. If you want to see one.”

“If you like the movies, we should go to one.”

On the evening of their date, they arrive at the theater. Steve buys their tickets, and they walk in and sit down. When the movie starts, a slightly baffled Diana whispers, “What’s in the big screen? Are people trapped in there? Why is there no sound?”

Steve leans in, and his breath tickles Diana’s ear. “It’s kind of like a play in a theater - think of the screen as a stage. A projector is used to put a pre-recorded image of people onto that screen.”

“I see,” Diana replies, nodding, but she’s still confused.

“I’ll explain more when the movie’s over.”

After a while, Diana inches closer to Steve and rests her head on his shoulder. In the dim light of the the theater, her hand finds Steve’s, and he laces his fingers with hers in response.

After the movie, they walk to the restaurant for dinner, and Steve, to the best of his ability, explains how movies work. “It’s kind of like that picture the photographer took of us in Belgium, but on a camera that can capture images of people moving.”

“So it’s a photographed play?”

Steve nods. “I suppose that’s one way you could put it, yes.”

When they arrive at the restaurant, Steve pulls Diana’s chair out so she can sit down, which confuses her. “Why are you pulling my chair out for me? I’m perfectly capable of doing that myself.”

Steve shrugs. “It’s the polite thing to do when you’re out on a date with someone.”

The first dish - tomato soup - arrives, and when Diana tastes it, she tells the waiter, “This is excellent. You should be very proud.”

Smiling, the waiter replies, “I’ll pass your compliments on to the chef.”

As the evening wears on, the waiter takes away empty dishes and brings filled ones. With each new dish, Diana asks the waiter to tell the chef how much they like the food. Diana’s favorite is roast beef in spicy sauce, which she enthusiastically consumes.

When warm apple tart with vanilla ice cream on the side arrives for their dessert, Diana’s face lights up. “How did they know what we wanted? We didn’t tell them.”

Steve raises his eyebrows sheepishly. “I _might_ have paid a visit to the kitchen yesterday and told the chef what you liked. I hope my choices were acceptable.”

 

After Steve and Diana finish dinner, they walk back to their apartment. When they get inside, they leave their shoes by the front door, and Steve turns the radio on. He bows, holding his hand out to Diana. “May I have this dance?”

She accepts, and Steve puts his other hand on her waist, holding her close. They sway to the slow, soothing melody of the orchestra, Diana’s head resting against Steve’s chest, listening to his heartbeat.

After some time lost in the steady, comforting sounds of Steve’s breathing and heartbeat, Diana asks, “When will we get married?”

Steve is caught off-guard, and he stops swaying. “Why do you ask?”

“Remember how in Veld, you mentioned that among other things, people get married when there are no wars to fight? I assume you were talking about us.”

“Yeah, I was,” a dumbstruck Steve manages. “Are you asking me to marry you?”

“I suppose so,” Diana replies, gazing up at Steve. “I always thought we would. Were you going to ask me?”

Steve lets out a small sigh. “Well, I had this big, romantic proposal planned out, and I was actually going to ask you later.”

Diana blinks apologetically, expression solemn. “Oh. I didn’t know.

“It’s okay. I’m glad you were the one who asked me. Engagements are generally surprises, but I didn’t feel quite right not telling you about it.”

Diana cups Steve’s cheek, thumb tracing the corner of his mouth. “Steve, I appreciate that you wanted to be honest with me, but it wasn’t a secret that would harm anyone.”

“I just don’t like keeping secrets from you, good or bad.”

“That’s one of the many reasons I love you. You’re always honest with me.”

“So, you’ll marry me?”

“I’m in love with you, Steve Trevor.” She stands on tiptoe to kiss his forehead. “It would be my privilege to marry you. There’s no one I’d rather grow old with.”

“Likewise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thank-you to Laura (anneweaver) for beta-ing this chapter and for screaming about Steve and Diana with me.


	4. i see my future in your eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Diana get married. After, they spend their honeymoon in Paris.
> 
> Chapter title from Perfect by Ed Sheeran.

Steve and Diana don’t want to make a big deal out of their wedding. They agree on a small ceremony at a church down the street from Steve’s apartment, and that they’ll invite Etta and Steve’s crew. Their only major disagreement is that initially, Diana wants to wear her armor.

“It’s ceremonial armor!”

“As much as I would love for you to wear your armor, I’m not sure how the judge marrying us would feel about it.”

Diana, holding up her armor, looks up at Steve skeptically. “Well, good thing a judge isn’t the one officiating; you’re asking Sammy to do it, right?”

“If we ever renew our vows on Themyscira, you can wear your armor then.” He holds out his hand. “Deal?”

Diana accepts his handshake. “I’ll hold you to that promise, Steve Trevor. What’s a vow renewal?”

“It’s when a married couple says their vows again some years after they’re married.”

“Why do they do it again?”

“I dunno. I guess it’s a symbolic reaffirmation of their love for one another.”

“And we’d do it on Themyscira so the Amazons could be there?”

“Exactly.”

Diana ends up choosing a dress similar to the one she wore at the gala, but in red. “If I can’t wear my armor, can I at least wear Antiope’s tiara and my gauntlets?”

“I don’t see why not.” 

Steve and Diana don’t tell anyone about the wedding until it’s happening, and when Steve calls Etta to tell her, she’s dismayed that she didn’t get to help Diana pick out her dress. “You can yell at me in person later,” Steve reminds her. That seems to mollify Etta.

Next, Steve calls Charlie, Sammy, and Chief. “Hey, Diana and I are getting married in the little church up the street from my apartment. Wear something decent. Also, Sameer, can you officiate?”

“But of course,” the Frenchman replies ecstatically. 

“Great! See you in a few hours!”

They arrive at the church, Diana radiant in her red gown. The chapel is mostly empty, save for the four guests sitting in a front-row pew. Sameer stands at the end of the aisle with Steve. Charlie, wearing his trademark kilt, loops his arm around Diana’s and walks her down the aisle to where Steve stands in his military uniform, beaming, that wayward lock of hair flopping over his forehead.

Steve and Diana don’t really remember most of their vows, but when they exchange the simple, braided gold bands and Sameer asks if they swear to love, honor, and cherish each other until death do them part, they answer, “I do,” in unison.

“You may kiss the bride.”

Diana pulls Steve down, and the kiss continues for at least thirty seconds, with Charlie wolf-whistling and Sameer throwing rice, until Etta clears her throat, and they break apart. Steve’s face almost matches the hue of Diana’s dress, and she smugly smiles up at her new husband.

After, Steve and Diana cut into a chocolate cake Etta made and feed each other bites. Their first dance is to Charlie’s rendition of the song they danced to in Veld all those years ago.

When Steve and Diana return to their apartment, they change out of their nice clothes, put on pajamas, and open the bottle of wine Chief gave them as a gift. They sit in bed, enjoying each other’s company, holding hands.

After a while, they abandon the wine for kissing. Diana moves so she’s sitting in Steve’s lap, pushing him against the headboard. Steve wraps an arm around Diana’s waist to pull her closer, but when his fingers accidentally brush her side under her pajama top, she startles away from him for a moment. Steve comes to the realization that she must be ticklish, and proceeds to tickle Diana until she’s breathless with laughter. She attempts to tickle Steve in retaliation, but that doesn’t work. “I’m not ticklish,” he laughs. 

“That’s not fair,” Diana manages to huff out.

“I just think it’s funny that you’re _ticklish_. I mean, you killed the god of war. You can fly. It’s oddly… normal.”

Diana takes that as a challenge, and she grins, mischief in her eyes. “No one is perfect, Steve. Everyone has a weakness. You’re so sure you don’t have one? We’ll see about that.” Suddenly, they’re kissing again, and Diana notes with smug satisfaction when her lips find a spot on Steve’s neck that makes him groan. 

Neither of them wants the evening to end. Diana is warm and steady against Steve, and the feeling of her mouth on his is one of his favorite things in the world. In the bedroom’s dim light, with legs intertwined, arms wrapped around each other’s waists, and Steve’s fingers tangled in Diana’s hair, it’s nearly impossible to tell where he ends and she begins. They’re as physically close as two people can possibly be, hearts beating in tandem.

If someone were to ask Steve Trevor what he thought home was, without fail, his answer would be Diana. To Steve, Diana is home. Her embrace makes him feel safe like nothing else in the world does. There’s something magical about the reverent way she looks at him, like he’s the only other person in the world, even when they’re in a room filled with people.

In the morning, Steve and Diana board a boat to the coast of France. They chose Paris for their honeymoon because Diana is fond of art and food, and the city has both in abundance. Steve has been to Paris, but just as a soldier passing through, so he wants to actually see the city.

The inn room Steve and Diana stay in is tiny, but their window gives them a beautiful city, and the inn itself is just up the street from a café. Steve wonders if he’ll ever get used to the feeling of delight when he wakes up and sees Diana next to him. He hopes he doesn’t.

When Steve and Diana visit the Louvre, her eyes go wide at the vastness of the place. Diana finds beauty in every painting and sculpture, but her favorite pieces of art are the ones depicting the Greek gods. They remind her of the pictures in the book Hippolyta showed her as a child. However, they take a slightly different take on the stories of the gods. Diana stops and stares at a painting of Zeus, her eyebrows knitted together.

“Why does he look so old? Zeus is immortal - he cannot age.”

“Humans - most of them, at least - believe Greek mythology to be just that: mythical. There are even stories about the Amazons.”

On the other hand, Steve has never really had an eye for art. He thinks the colors of some paintings are pretty, but the finer details are lost on him. Diana is more stunning than any painting or sculpture any artist could ever come up with. Steve stands in the home of one of the world’s finest art collections, and he would rather look at Diana.

Looking away from a painting, Diana catches Steve staring at her. “Is there something on my face?”

Steve is startled from his reverie, but manages to hold Diana’s gaze. “No, my love. I just enjoy looking at you.”

Diana responds with an expression of adoration so intense that Steve feels like the world is being yanked out from underneath him. When she pulls him down for a kiss, their lips meet. Diana’s fingers thread into Steve’s hair, and it takes every ounce of his willpower to pull away.

“Save that for tonight,” he whispers, breath tickling Diana’s ear.

“Oh, I certainly will,” Diana promises, a wicked gleam in her eye.

In quiet moments spent eating dinner by candlelight or sitting on a bench, listening to the sounds of the city, Steve catches glimpses of the future. When a young couple pushing a baby carriage passes by, Steve thinks about what he said to Diana in Veld, about how people have children when there are no wars to fight, and he squeezes her hand.

Diana caresses the back of Steve’s hand with her thumb. “That’ll be us someday.”

On their last day in Paris, Steve and Diana walk along the Seine, hand-in-hand, blissfully ignoring the knowledge that they have to go back to real life tomorrow.

“I love spending time with you. I wish this could last forever.”

“That makes two of us.”

“We have the rest of our lives to spend time together.”

“Out of all the people in this world you could have chosen to do that, you chose me. Sure, I’m above average when it comes to some things, but otherwise, I’m not special. I’m not important.”

“Yes, you are! You’re important to me.”

“I mean, you’re a goddess who can throw tanks and deflect bullets. You saved the world!”

“You did, too,” Diana gently reminds him.

Steve shrugs. “It’s kind of difficult for me to think of myself as your equal when you’re as amazing as you are.”

Diana cups Steve’s face in both hands. “I chose you because I love you. It’s as simple as that.”

In response, Steve presses a kiss to Diana’s temple. “I couldn’t have asked for a better person to spend the rest of my life with.”

Diana takes Steve’s left hand in her right, and she can feel his ring, a reminder that he’s hers and she’s his - forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Cherry and Laura for beta-ing and letting me yell about Stevediana.


	5. our definition of perfect was written when you were born

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Diana and Steve start a family.
> 
> Chapter title from Life by Sleeping at Last.

After Diana and Steve return home, life continues as usual. Steve and Diana wake up, eat breakfast, read the paper, and go to work. They take in a few more children displaced by the war until their parents are found. After about a year, Steve and Diana decide they’re ready to have a child of their own.

One day, Diana realizes she’s pregnant. When Steve gets home from work, Diana practically tackles him with a hug, almost knocking him down.

Steve plants a kiss on her cheek, laughing. “Oof! I missed you too!” Then, he notices Diana’s eager expression. “What is it?”

“We’re going to have a baby!”

Steve blinks, caught off-guard. “Really? You’re pregnant?”

“Yes!”

Diana knows Steve has been dreaming of this since that night in Veld, and the joy on his face is beautiful. “We’re going to be a family.”

Diana and Steve buy a house a little ways out from London, and, with Charlie, Sameer, and Etta’s help they move into it. Steve takes time off from work - when you and your wife are war heroes, it’s pretty easy to negotiate things like that - and Diana can still work at the museum.

In terms of cravings, Diana only has one: ice cream. It’s the middle of winter, so when she asks Steve if they have any, he’s incredulous.

“Why do you want ice cream? It’s the middle of January!”

“Ask the baby,” she replies with a shrug, pointing to her stomach.

Steve rolls his eyes. “If you want ice cream, we can make ice cream.”

After a few hours taking turns vigorously churning cream, sugar, and half a jar of strawberry preserves in a hand-cranked ice cream mixer, they have a small bowl of ice cream to show for their effort. Diana allows to Steve have a couple of bites, but takes the rest for herself.

Steve fake-pouts, trying to convince Diana to let him have more. “I had an equal part in making this! I should have half!”

“You aren’t carrying another person inside of you,” Diana objects.

“Fair enough,” he obliges, handing the bowl back to her.

Diana playfully punches him in the shoulder.

Many of Diana’s own sweaters and shirts don’t fit once the baby starts growing in earnest, so she takes to wearing Steve’s. One day, as they’re sitting in bed, he complains, “You’re stealing my clothes.”

“Technically, it’s _your_ fault I have to wear your clothing.” Diana winks. “I wouldn’t be this big if you didn’t...”

“Okay, you have a point,” Steve concedes. “Speak of, how’s our little warrior doing?” He sets his hand on Diana’s abdomen.

“Getting bigger every day.” Diana pauses. “Did you feel that? I think the baby just moved!”

Steve looks up at Diana, wide-eyed. “I did!” He leans down, kisses Diana’s stomach, and whispers, “Hi.”

Diana ruffles Steve’s hair and rolls her eyes in amusement. “You used to constantly tease me about being fond of babies, but look at you now. This one hasn’t even been born yet, and” To the baby, she whispers, “Your father is very excited to meet you, little one.”

“You’re excited, too,” Steve singsongs. “It’s only going to get worse once this baby is born.” He grins, which earns him a kiss on the cheek from Diana. “You’re going to be a great mother, you know.”

As the baby begins to become more active, Diana is often awakened in the middle of the night by kicking. More often than not, she accidentally wakes Steve, too, but he doesn’t mind. One night, he baby kicks hard enough that it startles Diana awake, and she accidentally elbows Steve. 

“Sorry,” Diana groans. “The baby won’t stop kicking.”

Steve, still half-asleep, mumbles, “She certainly has your fighting spirit.”

“You think the baby is a girl?”

“Just a feeling. Will you teach her how to fight?”

“If she wants to when she’s old enough.”

“If the baby is a girl, what will we name her?”

“Hmm.” Steve silently considers for a minute. “Katherine. And maybe Anne for her middle name?"

“Katherine Anne Prince-Trevor,” Diana tests the name herself. “Anne for Antiope?”

“Mmm-hmm.”

When they purchase baby clothes, things for the nursery, and other necessities, it’s safe to say that Steve is excited to be a father. Together, they pick out a bassinet for the first few months, a crib, blankets for swaddling, and a few stuffed animals for when the baby is old enough to play. Steve picks out a plush elephant with soft, synthetic blue fur.

Even eight and a half months pregnant, Diana is still perfectly capable of doing most things on her own, but one task she has trouble with is tying her boots, which Steve helps her with. “I feel like an overfilled sandbag ready to burst,” she complains. “I can’t bend over anymore.”

“Well, when you are ready, there’s a hospital half an hour away.”

“We are _not_ having the baby in a hospital.”

“Why not? It’s a perfectly safe place,” Steve exclaims, eyebrows raised.

“There’s no privacy! We would share a room filled with other people! Why can’t it happen here at home?”

Steve opens his mouth to object, but the steely glare Diana gives him makes him think better of it. “Fair enough.”

Diana goes into labor in the middle of the night, and when she wakes Steve, he remarks, “I’ll be surprised if this baby isn’t at least half as stubborn and difficult as you.”

In response, Diana punches her husband in the arm just hard enough that it hurts. “You say ‘difficult’ like it’s a bad thing.”

“It’s not, I promise. I just meant that you’re a fighter.”

Steve braids Diana’s hair to keep it untangled and out of her face. He also rubs her back and holds her hand. When their daughter finally comes into the world, kicking and screaming, Diana laughs. “My mother told me that’s what I did after she made me from clay.”

“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” Eyes bright with tears of joy, he asks, “Can I hold her?”  
joy.  
Diana makes room so Steve can sit next to her, then passes the little girl to him. “Hey, it’s your father,” he croons, gently rocking her.

“She has your eyes, Steve,” Diana points out. “Look.” The newborn’s head is coated with a fuzz of dark hair, and her eyes are the same brilliant, piercing blue as Steve’s.

“Huh, she does. And your hair!”

“I’m glad she has your eyes. I love your eyes.”

Smiling, Steve presses a kiss to Diana’s forehead. “She’s beautiful, just like you.” He gazes reverently at how carefully Diana holds Katherine. He’s seen his wife cross No Man’s Land, seen her throw tanks, knows that she killed the god of war. He knows she’s capable of gentleness, but the care with which she holds their daughter mesmerizes him.

Diana always feels like she’s at home when she’s with Steve, but now that Katherine’s there, the word somehow seems even more right. “She’s perfect, Steve.”

“You did this.”

Diana elbows Steve.“ _We_ did. Stop giving me all the credit. She’s yours, too.”

“You did all the work, though!”

“She’s ours, Steve. We’re a family.”

Steve brushes his finger against Katherine’s palm, and she grabs it with surprising strength. Rendered speechless, his expression is one of fascinated wonder, and Diana cups Steve’s cheek in her palm.

When Katherine wakes up crying that first night, neither of her parents are sure of what’s happening. Bleary-eyed and exhausted, Diana and Steve stumble to the nursery. “I thought babies spent most of their time sleeping,” Diana mumbles sleepily.

“That makes both of us. I mean, I knew about the waking up in the middle of the night sometimes, but I didn’t really understand what the big deal was.”

“I thought taking care of those children would prepare us for having a baby.”

“I guess no one’s ever really prepared the first time.”

Steve carries the bassinet into their room so they’re close if Katherine needs feeding or changing again. Diana sits in the rocking chair and lets Katherine nurse. Soon after, the baby falls asleep again. Steve and Diana climb back into bed, and they fall asleep, too.

A knock on the front door wakes them. Sunlight streams in through the windows, and when Steve and Diana get out of bed, the first thing they notice is that Katherine still sleeps soundly. They make their way to the front door, where Etta stands, holding a stack of containers.

“Hello,” Etta exclaims. She sets the containers down so she can hug Steve and Diana. “I know you’re busy, so I brought food. Can I see the baby?”

As if on cue, a loud cry comes from the bedroom. “That would be Katherine,” Steve says, and disappears into the room for a couple of minutes, returning with the newborn in his arms.

“Oh, she’s beautiful,” Etta gushes. “She has your eyes, Steve.”

“So I’ve been told,” he admits, blushing.

Over the course of the week after Katherine’s birth, Charlie, Chief, and Sameer all visit. Charlie is particularly enamored by Katherine, but initially objects when Diana and Steve offer to let him hold her, saying “Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt her.”

Looking Charlie in the eyes, Diana says firmly, “I know you won’t. You can even sing to her if you’d like.” She hands Katherine to Charlie, whose eyes are bright with tears.

As they watch Charlie sing to Katherine, Steve whispers, “This is the happiest I’ve seen him since our wedding. He’s had a rough go of it. His sister got sick and passed away. I think we’re the only family he has left.”

“Why do such terrible things happen to good people?”

“I don’t know, Diana. I really don’t.”

Even before Katherine can crawl, it’s apparent that she has quite a few things in common with her mother. If she doesn’t like something, she’s quick to let her parents know. When Steve gives Katherine a bath for the first time, she squirms, pummeling her father with tiny fists as Diana watches in amusement.

One thing Diana isn’t prepared for is how much Katherine cries. Sometimes, she cries when she’s in her mother’s arms, which makes Diana worry. “Am I doing something wrong,” she anxiously asks Steve. “Am I hurting her?”

Steve reassuringly squeezes Diana’s shoulder. “You’re doing just fine, love. I’m pretty sure she’d let you know if you upset her, but I can try to get her to sleep if you need a break.”

After handing Katherine to Steve, an exhausted Diana promptly falls asleep. “Your mother’s pretty tired, huh,” he murmurs to Katherine, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “Why don’t we go for a walk?”

After covering Diana with a quilt, Steve carries Katherine out to the meadow behind the house. He carries her in his arms, singing nonsensical melodies until she finally dozes off. Steve, still singing, brings her inside and places her in the crib.

Steve climbs into bed next to Diana, nudging her awake. “Katherine’s asleep now. Are you feeling better?”

Diana rolls to face Steve, resting her head against his chest. “That’s good, and I do feel better. Were you singing to Katherine?”

Steve nods. “I guess she likes the sound of my voice.”

“She’s not the only one,” Diana mutters, and Steve can feel her smile on his neck.

After kissing Diana’s forehead, Steve asks, “Do you want me to sing to you?”

Diana playfully swats him. “Later, when I’m not so tired. Right now, I just want to sleep.”

“You know what my sister never told me? How exhausting it is to take care of a baby. They spend most of their time sleeping, but when they’re awake, it’s always in the middle of the night.”

Diana raises an eyebrow. “If you think just waking up in the middle of the night is tiring, try feeding Katherine.”

“Hey, I’m awake as long as you are,” Steve replies defensively. "We're in this together."

“Apparently, it’s going to get worse once she can move around on her own. My mother said that I began causing trouble as soon as I started crawling.”

Steve groans. “If our little warrior takes after you as much as I suspect she does, we’ll have our hands full in a few months. It’ll be fun, though.”

“That it will be.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Cherry and Laura for beta-ing and enabling my self-indulgent ideas!


	6. there's magic in all of this

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Katherine grows, and Diana and Steve take her to Themyscira.
> 
> Chapter title from Body by Sleeping at Last.

As Katherine grows, the “little warrior” moniker fits her more and more, and Steve’s prediction proves correct. Once the learns how to crawl, she’s unstoppable. When she’s not eating or sleeping, she’s crawling. On one occasion, she manages to climb out of her crib while her parents are sleeping. When they wake up, Katherine is nowhere to be found. Steve and Diana search the house, calling her name. Steve eventually finds her in Diana’s closet, curled up on her mother’s shield, fast asleep. 

“Look,” he whispers. “She really is a miniature version of you.”

Diana nods. “Our little warrior, as you said.”

Katherine grows to fit her nickname. She’s a year old, still unable to walk, but the half-Amazon girl is strong. It comes as a shock when Steve, enjoying a few minutes of peace and quiet at the dinner table with Diana, suddenly slides to the floor. Diana doesn’t have to look down to know that it’s Katherine, and she sighs. “Katherine, let go of your father.” The little girl, still holding on to her father’s ankle, looks up with wide-eyed innocence, and even Steve can’t help but smile.

For Katherine’s first birthday, Steve and Diana bake a cake. They half-expect her to throw it at the wall - or Steve. Instead, she buries her face in it, laughing.

Once Katherine is able to stand upright, tackling Steve becomes her new favorite pastime. At night, Steve sits in her room with the intention of waiting until she falls asleep, but usually, he falls asleep first. Sometimes, he wakes up to his daughter tackling him. Diana hears a thud, so she runs to Katherine’s room, and finds Steve on the floor next to the crib. Katherine sits on her father’s back, laughing. Diana tries to hide her amusement, but fails.

“This isn’t funny,” Steve groans. “Get her off of me!”

Diana moves as if to pick Katherine up, but at the last second, she gleefully tackles Steve, which makes Katherine giggle happily.

“What was that for?”

“I thought it would be funny.”

“You’re supposed to be on my side!”

For Steve, teaching Katherine how to walk involves holding her hands and placing her feet on his. Always a quick, determined learner, it’s not long before Katherine is toddling around, mostly by herself, sometimes holding onto her parents’ hands.

Katherine turns two, and Steve brings up the idea of visiting Themyscira. “She can walk by herself.”

“True, and I’m sure Mother would love to meet her.”

“She probably wouldn’t mind seeing you again, either.”

Steve isn’t sure how Diana does it, but she sends a letter to Themyscira, letting the Amazons know that she’s returning with Steve. She doesn’t mention Katherine. “I would like to surprise my mother.”

When their boat slides up to the docks, two soldiers help them climb out. As Diana and Steve step onto the island, Hippolyta rushes over to hug her daughter. “Diana!”

“Hello, mother.”

“I didn’t think you’d return! We knew Ares was dead, but without any way to communicate with you, I…” Hippolyta trails off when she notices the gold band on Diana’s finger. 

“Did you get married?”

“Yes.”

Half-expecting Hippolyta to attack him, Steve cuts in. “I would’ve asked for your permission, but at the time, we didn't know how to contact you.”

“As long as Diana is happy.” Upon glancing at Steve again, she notices Katherine, clinging to her father’s hand. “Is she yours?”

Diana nods. She takes Katherine’s other hand. “This is Katherine. Katherine Anne - for Antiope.”

Hippolyta’s eyes glisten. “She would be proud, and so am I. May I carry her? The walk to the palace is a long one.”

Steve leans down, picks Katherine up, and hands her to the Amazon queen. “She looks so much like Diana did at that age.”

“Oh, they share more than just looks,” Steve remarks. “You’ll see.”

When they arrive at the palace door, Diana and Hippolyta disappear inside, taking Katherine with them. Hippolyta brings out Diana’s gauntlets and armor from when she was little and puts them on Katherine. The toddler is a more than a little bewildered, but she manages to point at Diana and say, “like Mama.”

Diana dons her own armor, puts her shield on her back, and walks outside with Katherine on her hip. 

When Steve sees them, his jaw drops and his eyes go wide. This might be his new favorite memory of Katherine. Diana sets her down, and she runs to Steve, yelling, “Dada!” She proceeds to tackle her father’s legs, knocking him flat on his back. 

The Amazons snicker, and Steve knows they’re laughing at him, at his human weakness, but he laughs along with them, because he knows it makes Katherine happy.

Since Hippolyta and the other Amazons haven’t played with a child since Diana was growing up, they’re more than happy to play with her. As Diana leads Steve away, he catches a glimpse of one Amazon picking his daughter up and setting her on her shoulders.

Diana takes Steve on a tour of the island. The last time Steve was here, he was a prisoner and didn’t see much, so Diana takes the opportunity to show him around the island. It starts raining - not heavily, but enough that they don’t want to be outside - so they go into the caves.

In the dim, iridescent light given off by the water, Steve and Diana sit shoulder-to-shoulder with their feet in one of the pools. 

“Hey, remember how this is where you saw me naked for the first time,” Steve reminisces, smirking.

Diana raises an eyebrow in amusement. “Yes. Are you proposing a repeat?”

He glances over to Diana, a twinkle in his eye. “Maybe.” He starts to remove his shirt, but Diana splashes him.

“You’re not going to let me have any fun?” She pouts, skimming her fingers over the skin of Steve’s abdomen, bare underneath his shirt.

“Oh, you’ll have plenty of fun.”

“Is that a challenge, Steve Trevor?”

“Only if you want it to be.”

Diana pulls Steve into a kiss, and they fall into the water.

When they emerge, Steve’s hair is tousled, and there are a few red marks on his neck barely covered by his collar. “Your mother will kill me!”

Diana runs her fingers through Steve’s hair, smoothing it down. “That isn’t my problem.” Smirking, she adds, “You certainly didn’t complain when I made those marks.”

Since they’re on Themyscira, Diana takes the trip as an opportunity to re-train. She’s a bit out of practice - she hasn’t had to fight since she killed Ares. In the morning, Diana sits with Katherine in her lap, listening to an instructor explain the day’s schedule. The little girl climbs on her mother’s chest, reaching over her shoulder in an attempt to grab her shield.

“Katherine, darling. I need my shield. Steve, can you please take her?”

“Of course, my love.” To Katherine, he says, “Here, there are more than enough shields for you to sleep on.”

Hippolyta and Steve sit just outside of the training field, watching Diana. When Katherine isn’t napping in an unused shield, she also watches, imitating her mother. Sometimes, she falls over when she tries to mimic a jump or a spin. Steve simply helps his daughter up, and Katherine goes right back to watching her mother with intense fascination.

Hippolyta remarks, “Diana did that when she was younger, you know. She was a little older than Katherine is now, but it feels like I’m watching my daughter grow up again.”

Steve smiles fondly. “That doesn’t surprise me. She’s basically a miniature version of her mother.” Absorbed in conversation, Steve doesn’t notice Katherine sneak up to him, and the little girl grabs her father’s leg, pulling him down.

Hippolyta watches with amusement as Katherine crawls up to her father’s chest and latches her arms around his neck. “She’s strong.”

“You’re human. A half-Amazon is going to be stronger than you, even a child whose head barely reaches your knee.”

“Yeah,” Steve groans. “I got that.” 

Diana, taking a break from sparring, makes her way over, and if Hippolyta weren’t standing there, she would join Katherine in tackling Steve. “Did she catch you off-guard?”

“No,” Steve insists, even as he tries to sit up, Katherine still clinging to him. “We were just playing.”

“I’m sure you were,” she replies, exchanging a knowing look with Hippolyta.

When Diana and Steve bring Katherine into the caves for a bath, the glowing water captivates her. She doesn’t want to leave, and it takes Steve filling a bottle to bring back with them to appease her.

The last day of their visit to Themyscira is particularly warm and sunny, so Diana and Steve take Katherine to the beach for a picnic. Katherine plays at the water’s edge, giggling when little waves wash in and knock her down. At first, Steve runs to help her up, but she refuses to let him. Steve goes back to the blanket with Diana, who rests with her head on his chest, and he quietly sings to her, absentmindedly fiddling with her hair as they watch Katherine.

Diana points to the rockier section of the beach, where the sand is darker, not as smooth. “This is where we met. It’s fitting - we’re back where we began, and Katherine is with us.”

“If you want to be technical, that was a little further down the beach. You saved me from drowning. I woke up on the sand, and there you were, saying, ‘You’re a man.’”

“I had never seen a man before! If I recall correctly, the first thing _you_ said to me was ‘Wow.’”

“You were - and still are - breathtakingly beautiful!” Steve shrugs. “It kind of just… slipped out.”

“You don’t need to use flattery to make me like you, Steve. We’re married.”

“It’s true, though.”

Foreheads pressed together, their noses brush, and just as their lips are about to meet, Katherine jumps on Steve’s legs, and they break apart. “Mama! Dada!”

Steve sits up and lifts his daughter, plunking her on his lap. “Hi, sweetheart! What do you need?”

“Hungry,” she says, pointing to the basket filled with bread, cheese, nuts, and fruit.

After lunch, Katherine wants to go swimming, so Steve and Diana take her into the shallows and hold her hands as she floats around. When she tires of that, Steve suggests, “You should show her your diving.”

Diana sprints to the top of one of the lower cliffs, and gracefully dives. Katherine watches in wonder, and when her mother reappears, she claps delightedly. 

The sun begins to dip below the horizon, and Katherine, worn out, sleepily stumbles as they trek back to the living quarters. Diana scoops her up, and the little girl loops her arms around her mother’s neck and falls asleep, her head resting on Diana’s shoulder. Diana wraps her free arm around Steve’s waist, and he presses a kiss to the back of their daughter’s head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks to Laura and Cherry for beta-ing and encouraging me to keep writing.


	7. it grows and grows (our home sweet home)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Diana and Steve's family grows.
> 
> Chapter title from 'From the Ground Up' by Sleeping at Last.

Diana, Steve, and Katherine return home. Life continues as usual for a couple of uneventful months, with Katherine pretending to train like the Amazons when she plays. Steve and Diana watch their daughter grow into a miniature version of her mother, and they couldn’t be more content.

That is, until Diana notices the familiar signs of pregnancy: her shirts are becoming tighter, her ice cream cravings are more intense than usual, and the gentle flutter in her stomach that definitely isn’t from metaphorical butterflies. Steve is already home from work, but Diana decides to wait until after Katherine is asleep to tell him.

That night, after Diana reads Katherine a story, Steve takes his turn singing to her. As he walks to the door to tell Diana to come in so they can say goodnight to their daughter together, Katherine pipes up.

“Daddy?”

“Yes, sweetheart?”

“How did you meet Mama?”

“You’ve already had your story tonight. I’ll tell you some other time.” 

Katherine glances at Steve pleadingly. “Please?”

Steve sighs. “If you insist. My plane crashed in the ocean, and your mother saved me. I guess she dragged me to the beach, because when I woke up, she was kneeling over me like a guardian angel.”

“Mama was an angel?

“No, but at the time, I thought she was.”

“Tell me more!”

“That’s a long story, and you need to sleep.”

Katherine pouts. “But I wanna hear more now!”

“Some other time, darling. I promise.” Steve kisses his daughter’s forehead. “It’s time for bed.”

Diana walks over to Katherine’s crib, smiling contently. “It’s true. The first thing he said to me was, ‘Wow’.”

Rolling his eyes, Steve scoffs. “You’re never going to let that go, are you?”

Diana shakes her head. “It amuses me.” To Katherine, she says, “Goodnight, sweetheart.”

“Goodnight, Mama.”

Once Katherine’s toys are picked up and put away, dinner dishes washed, Diana and Steve sit in bed, enjoying a rare moment to themselves where one or both of them isn’t asleep, working, or busy with their daughter. Steve’s head rests on Diana’s shoulder as she runs her fingers through his hair.

Steve rolls over to face his wife. “Di?”

“Yes, Steve?”

“Have I ever told you that you and Katherine are the best things that have ever happened to me?”

“No. Why?”

“Just wanted to make sure you knew.”

Raising her eyebrows, Diana replies,“Me and Katherine? No one else?”

“What do you mean?”

Diana points to her stomach. “Are you that oblivious?”

Steve’s face lights up, hopeful. “Are you-”

Diana presses a kiss to his cheek. “We’re having another child!” Her hand rests on her stomach, and he laces his fingers with hers. 

“When do you think this happened?”

“The caves, back when we visited Themyscira.”

Steve’s cheeks pinken at the memory. "It was fun, though.”

“How do you think Katherine will feel about this?”

“The only way to find out for sure is to tell her. I suspect she’ll figure it out quickly enough, though.”

As predicted, Katherine, ever-observant, is quick to notice. “Mama, what’s that,” she asks, gently tapping her mother’s abdomen.

Diana pats the empty side of the bed, and Katherine jumps up, seating herself in her mother’s lap. “You’ll have a brother or sister in a few months!”

The little girl tilts her head, perplexed. “What?”

“I’m going to have another baby.” She moves her arms in a rocking motion.

Katherine’s eyes widen in excitement. “Baby!”

“Are you excited?” Steve asks.

Katherine nods energetically.

“It’s nice to know that won’t be an issue. She’ll be an amazing sister.”

“Of course she will! She’ll have a playmate her own size. I adore playing with her, but she doesn’t have many other children close to her age to play with all the time.”

With an idea of what to expect, the second time around is a little easier. Diana enjoys the excuse to wear Steve’s shirts and eat ice cream. Katherine enjoys whispering to her mother’s growing belly, talking to the baby. Her enthusiasm about becoming an older sister knows no bounds.

For Diana, pregnancy means two things: wearing Steve’s shirts and craving ice cream. If Steve didn’t know any better, he would swear Diana timed it on purpose so she could eat ice cream even during the coldest months of the year.

This winter is Katherine’s first true experience with snow. She was only a few months old when it first snowed after she was born, and last winter was too muddy to be enjoyable. This winter, however, doesn’t disappoint.

Flakes swirl through the air, and Katherine, bundled up against the cold, cheeks rosy, is enchanted. “It’s magical,” she gasps, trying to catch the cold, white fluff. Tears spring to Steve’s eyes.

“Are you okay?” Diana asks.

Steve nods. “I’m fine. What Katherine just said… it reminded me of Veld.

Diana loops her arm with Steve’s. “I love you.”

For the last few weeks of her pregnancy, Diana stays home with Katherine. Once again, she feels like an overstuffed bag, and sitting at a desk all day doesn’t help, but movement usually does.

More than once, Steve comes home from work to find his wife and daughter asleep on the floor, Katherine’s head resting on Diana’s chest. When he nudges Katherine awake, she rubs her eyes, then jumps up, shouting, “Daddy!” as she runs at his legs.

“How was work?” Diana asks, standing so she can kiss Steve.

“Same as usual. Lots of paperwork. How was your day?”

“Sounds exciting,” Diana remarks sarcastically. She gestures to her head. “Katherine and I made flower crowns today when we went on a walk, then fell asleep in here. We made you one, too.”

“Thanks.”

“We didn’t want you to miss out on all the fun.”

Katherine is asleep, but Steve and Diana aren’t. The baby is restless, and while this one usually quiets down pretty quickly once Diana walks around the house a few times, but this isn’t the case tonight.

Steve sits on the edge of the bed, next to where Diana rests. “Nothing’s working?”

Diana shakes her head. “I think the little one wants out. He was pretty calm earlier, but now, he won’t stop moving.”

“Maybe dancing will do the trick,” Steve suggests.

“For what? Getting the baby out or calming the baby down?”

“You know what I meant.”

“You’ll have to help me up first.”

Diana takes Steve’s hand, resting her head on his shoulder, and he buries his face in her hair. Gently, they sway back and forth, absorbed in each other.

“I wish I could be closer, but,” Diana gestures to her stomach. “I can’t get close enough.”

Carefully, Steve rests his palm on Diana’s abdomen. “I think he’s calmed down.”

“He? You think the baby’s a boy?”

“Wishful thinking, I guess. I won’t be outnumbered anymore.”

Closing her eyes, Diana breathes deeply. “Outnumbered or not, now that the baby’s calmed down, I would like to sleep.”

“Glad I could help. I guess the baby likes the sound of my voice, too.”

“Who wouldn’t love the sound of your voice?”

Steve rolls his eyes, but smiles all the same, gazing at his wife with unwavering adoration. “You flatter me, angel.”

Cradling Steve’s cheek in her hand, forehead pressed against his, Diana kisses him. “I am not flattering you. I am simply telling the truth. I love you, Steve.”

Steve helps her into bed, and after mumbling, “Goodnight,” she’s asleep. Gently, he covers her with the quilt, then crawls underneath and lays next to her. Gently, he presses his lips to her neck, and whispers, “Goodnight, my love.”

Charles Samuel, named after Charlie and Sameer, is born on a warm, bright spring afternoon. If Katherine is a miniature version of Diana, Charlie is a miniature version of Steve. With blond curls and his father’s bright blue eyes, wide with fascination and wonder at everything, he reminds her of the Steve she first met.

Katherine is out with Etta, so Steve and Diana can have a few hours of peace and quiet with Charlie.

“Your mother’s going to kill me,” Steve groans.

Diana smirks. “And that’s if she doesn’t find out where he was conceived.”

“We don’t have to tell them.”

Etta returns with Katherine, who’s practically bouncing with excitement. She jumps into her parents’ bed. “Can I see the baby?”

Steve puts a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “If you’re quiet.” He takes a sleeping Charlie out of the bassinet. “This is your brother.”

“Hi,” Katherine whispers.

“Would you like to hold him?”

Bewildered, the little girl nods. After climbing into her parents’ bed and situating herself next to Diana, she holds her arms out. Steve gently settles Charlie into his sister’s arms, watching his children intently.

In time, Charlie comes to visit. After hugging Diana and saying hello to Katherine, he turns to Steve, who holds his son in his arms.

“What’s his name?”

“Charles. Charlie for short.”

Dumbfounded, he stares at his namesake in shock. “You- you named him after me?”

“He’s a fighter, just like you.”

The second time around, it’s a little easier, but still overwhelming, especially with half-Amazon children. Diana has no experience with baby boys, so Steve needs to step in sometimes.

Charlie is much calmer than his sister. Once he starts crawling, he can get around quickly, but when Katherine tries to get her little brother to play with her, more often than not, he’s content to watch her fight imaginary monsters.

“I think we got all the wild out with Katherine,” Steve remarks as they watch her run around, trying to get Charlie to chase after her. He sits placidly, sucking his fingers as he watches his sister slash at the air with an invisible sword.

“If she’s a miniature version of me, I think Charlie is a miniature version of you.”

After a while, he crawls over to the chair where Steve sits. Katherine notices and runs over to join him. Together, they tug their father to the ground.

“Not all the wild, apparently,” Steve groans.

“Come on, this is fun!”

“You try being the tackled and dragged one,” he huffs as Katherine sits on his back.

“I’m not the human who decided to have children with an Amazon warrior.”

“You encourage them,” Steve protests.

Diana shrugs apologetically, picking Charlie up and settling him on her hip. “Like I said, it’s amusing to watch.”  
“Hey, remember what you said in Veld? How the dancing we did wasn’t real dancing?”

Diana raises an eyebrow. “You want me to show you?”

“Only if you want to.”

Diana passes Charlie to Steve, and Katherine climbs off her father’s back so she can watch, too.

She dances, and Steve, Katherine, and Charlie watch with wide-eyed awe. Katherine, always wanting to be like her mother, gets up and tries to mimic Diana. She shrieks with laughter as she tries to keep up with her chubby toddler legs.

Breathless, Diana sinks onto the couch. “I’ve wanted to show you real dancing for years. I’m glad you finally asked.”

“Getting married, making babies. What’s next?”

“Growing old together.”

This reminds Diana that Steve will age while she doesn’t, that she’ll lose him forever. She doesn’t know how, but she silently vows that neither of them will have to bear the pain of losing each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks to Cherry and Laura for beta-ing and encouraging.
> 
> Just a PSA that I'll be at camp this week (July 23-29), and then I'm moving, so it may be a little while before I can update again.


	8. let the years we're here be kind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Katherine and Charlie continue to grow up, and Steve and Diana celebrate their tenth anniversary.
> 
> Chapter title from North by Sleeping at Last.

As Katherine and Charlie continue to grow, so does their energy. Steve, the only full-blooded human in the house, is overwhelmed by chasing after toddlers who are faster and stronger than he is. Charlie is by far the calmer of the two, but he still gets into mischief.

One of Charlie’s favorite pastimes is following small animals through the meadow that surrounds the house. More than once, Charlie, barely as tall as the grass, wanders through on unsteady legs in pursuit of a rabbit or fawn, and Steve and Diana look everywhere.

When they do find him, he sits, either petting the small animal or disappointedly gazing in the direction the animal disappeared. Sometimes, Katherine follows him, and it turns into a game of hide-and-seek.

Steve, red-faced and panting, scoops his son up. “I pity Hippolyta and your tutors.”

Taking Charlie from Steve, Diana shrugs. “In my defense, I didn’t know our children would be stronger than normal human children.”

“I’m outnumbered!”

“You always bring that up.”

Steve makes an exasperated noise. “Not always, just sometimes. Besides, when they crash into me and tackle me to the ground, all you do is watch and laugh.”

“Oh, they crash into you the way you came crashing into my life. Katherine and Charlie definitely get that from you.” Diana pauses, looking around. “Where is Katherine?”

As if on cue, she emerges from the grass. “Here,” she exclaims. “The rabbit ran, so I tried to get it for Charlie.”

Katherine, who grows more mischievous by the day, now has a faint dusting of freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her dark hair is as wild and untameable as ever, and more often than not, Steve has to gently brush it out of a tangled mess.

When Steve tries to kiss his little girl, she pushes him to the other side of the room. Diana helps him up, barely suppressing her laughter.

“She let me do that all the time when she was smaller! What’s gotten into her?”

Raising an eyebrow, Diana replies, “I suspect she’s learned she doesn’t always have to accept what people give to her.”

 

This winter is the family’s first with all four people - Charlie was too small to go out last year, and Diana despises cold weather, so she sat at the window and watched Steve take Katherine sledding, Charlie sleeping contently in her arms.

Now that Charlie can walk on his own, albeit sometimes unsteadily, the whole family goes outside. Katherine and Charlie are bundled up, and so is Diana. Her eyes are the only things Steve can see - a scarf covers her mouth and nose, and her knit hat is pulled down to her eyebrows. 

“It’s not even that cold,” Steve protests, barely holding back laughter. “I thought you liked snow.”

“This is the coldest it’s been since I arrived in your world.” Diana glares at Steve, silencing him.

In spite of Diana’s immense dislike of cold weather, watching her children joyfully play in the snow is a sight she’ll never tire of.

“You know, when I agreed about the snow being magical, I was actually talking about you.”

“That wasn’t lost on me, Steve.”

Clinging to his mother’s hand, Charlie stumbles around, in awe of the cold, white fluff that melts when he tries to catch it on his tongue.

Katherine starts a snowball fight with Steve. Diana stays out of the way and instead helps Charlie build a snowman, but when a stray snowball hits her in the back of the head, she tosses one right back at him.

“You asked for it!”

Charlie doesn’t quite understand what’s going on, but he helpfully makes piles of snow for his mother and sister to make snowballs from, and it turns into a two-on-one assault.

Steve eventually pops up from behind a bush, arms raised in defeat. “I give up!”

Rosy-cheeked and giggling, Katherine peeks out from behind Diana’s arm. “Mama thinks you threw that snowball on purpose.”

“I have no idea where she got _that_ from,” Steve replies nonchalantly, but there’s a twinkle in his eye.

“Oh, I’ll get my revenge,” Diana promises, grinning wickedly.

The family heads inside, and once coats, hats, and scarves are peeled off, Charlie, exhausted from playing, falls asleep on his father’s lap. Steve carries him to bed, then quietly tiptoes back into the kitchen.

Katherine is still wound up, so Diana and Steve sit beside her and read stories until she calms down. When her eyelids begin to droop, they half-lead, half-carry her upstairs to bed. Despite being sleepy, she still bursts with excitement. 

“Mama?”

“Yes, dear?”

“When will we go back to the island?”

“Maybe in another year or two. Why do you ask?”

“I’m sure Grandma and everyone would love to meet Charlie!”

Diana and Steve exchange a knowing look. “I’m sure they would,” Diana agrees, turning back to Katherine. “It’s time to sleep now, okay? I love you.”

“I love you, mama.”

Diana stands in the doorway, watching Steve sing to Katherine. As Steve leaves Katherine’s room, quietly closing the door behind him, Diana takes his hand, lacing her fingers with Steve’s, and they make their way back to their bedroom.

Once they’re comfortably settled in bed, Steve leans in and whispers, “Do you know how lucky our children are to have you?”

Diana presses a kiss to his forehead. “They’re lucky to have you, too.”

That summer, Katherine turns five, and all too soon, it’s time for her to start school. Steve, ever the concerned father, has a small crisis about being away from his daughter all day.

“Why can’t she just learn at home? I’m sure you’re a perfectly capable teacher!”

Diana gives Steve a stern look. “It’ll be better for her to interact with other children her age. Are you sure this isn’t just because you don’t want to be away from her?”

“I just want her to be happy, and I think she’d be much happier at home than sitting on a bench all day!”  
For their tenth anniversary, Steve takes Diana out to the same restaurant they went to on their first date. Diana wears a simple, yet stunning gown of deep blue, and Steve dons his military uniform, medals glinting on his jacket.

Smoothing Steve’s collar, Diana remarks, “You should wear this more often. It looks good on you.”

“Thank you, love,” Steve replies, kissing Diana on the cheek. “Now, where’s Etta? She should be here soon.”

As if on cue, the sounds of a car parking and doors slamming come from the front yard. Diana opens the door to find Etta and Charlie standing on the other side.

“Sorry if I’m late,” Etta apologizes, panting. “Charlie wanted to see the kids, so I brought him. Is that okay?”

Upon seeing his friend, Steve’s face lights up. “Charlie! You didn’t tell us you were coming!”

“Thought I’d surprise you. Now, where are the little ones?”

“Your namesake is playing in his room. I’m not sure about Katherine.”

Upon hearing the commotion downstairs, Katherine comes down to investigate. When she sees her godfather, she sprints downstairs and jumps into his arms, shouting, “Uncle Charlie!”

He spins her around. “You’ve gotten so big!”

“What am I,” Etta asks, throwing her hands up in mock exasperation. “Chopped liver?”

Charlie sets a giggling Katherine down so she can hug Etta.

As Steve heads out the door, Etta whispers, “The roses you asked me to get are waiting at the restaurant.”

“You’re the best.”

“Don’t you forget it!”

In the soft, flickering glow of candlelight, over plates of apple pie, Steve asks, “What do you think about renewing our vows?”

“Renewing our vows?”

Steve reaches across the table and takes Diana’s hand. “It’s a symbolic ceremony married couples do after they’ve been married for a given length of time. Vow renewals are reaffirmations of the promises they made at their wedding.”

Diana nods, but her eyebrows are still furrowed in confusion. “What gave you the idea?”

“I got the idea when Katherine asked about visiting Themyscira again, but I wanted to wait until tonight to ask. Besides, I think it’s only fair I get to ask you this time. I also got you roses.” He pulls the bouquet out from underneath his chair.

Diana smiles, accepting the flowers. “I think that would be lovely.”

“We can have the ceremony on Themyscira with Katherine and Charlie and the Amazons. Bring everything full-circle.” Steve pauses and adds, “And I’m sure Hippolyta would love to walk you down the aisle.”

“If she doesn’t murder you for fathering a son.”

Sheepishly, Steve replies, “I’m fully prepared for that possibility.”

Diana smiles warmly and squeezes his hand. As they walk down the street to where the driver Etta hired waits, Diana leans against Steve, and he presses a kiss to the top of her head.

“I love you, angel,” he whispers.

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks to Cherry and Laura for beta-ing and being my cheerleaders, and to everyone who reads this fic for your kind comments.


End file.
